


Daffodil

by thunderstorm (ConsultingTimelordWizard)



Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: After Ending Spoilers (Mystic Messenger), F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, V | Kim Jihyun's Route, mc has a name, slight AU, v's after ending spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-08
Updated: 2019-04-08
Packaged: 2020-01-06 18:17:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18393776
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ConsultingTimelordWizard/pseuds/thunderstorm
Summary: Mint Eye has been blown to pieces, and Ray is presumed dead. Kasumi has a hard time dealing with her grief.SPOILERS for V's After Ending. Follows V's Route platonically, MC's feelings toward Ray are romantic.





	Daffodil

> **Ray:** I miss you so much..
> 
> **Ray:** Kasumi…
> 
> **Ray:** I wish…
> 
> **Ray:** I could go back in time when I first met you…
> 
> **Ray:** and my savior… if you don’t come back 
> 
> **Ray:** Our paradise won’t exist anymore in this world… will it?
> 
> **Ray:** I shall carry on your last wishes. Thank you for saving me.
> 
> **Ray:** Though it was very brief, I was happy at your paradise… 
> 
> **Ray:** and Kasumi… my Kasumi… 
> 
> **Kasumi:** ray you’re scaring me. what’s happening?
> 
> **Kasumi:** you sound like you’re dying
> 
> **Ray:** heh… I wanted to see your smiling face one last time
> 
> **Ray:** Still, I’m happy that I can at least talk to you through this chat room
> 
> **Kasumi:** ray stop talking like that. please call me.
> 
> **Ray:** I wish I could. I’m sorry.
> 
> **Ray:** Goodbye for real, Kasumi
> 
> **UNKNOWN HAS LEFT THE CHAT ROOM.**
> 
> **Kasumi:** ray?
> 
> **Kasumi:** RAY

 

——

 

Kasumi couldn’t believe she was in the same house as Rika once again, but here she was. 

Seven’s anxiety about the woman was rubbing off on her, his pacing sure to wear a hole into the floor, but she couldn’t bring herself to actually say anything to him unlike the rest of the RFA. Despite the organization feeling as close to family as she’d ever had, being cooped up with them all in a log cabin in the middle of the woods along with the formerly-deceased, slightly-crazed founder was enough to point out the little ticks that now drove Kasumi up the wall.

For example, if she had to hear Zen hum under his breath one more time she was going to scream—normally, Kasumi quite liked when the actor put on impromptu shows and fangirled with Jaehee, but to hear it every day? Forget about it. Seven’s pacing made her eye twitch, Jaehee’s heels clacking against the worn wood floors grated against her sanity, and Yoosung’s complaints about how everyone was supposedly treating Rika badly was enough to drive her crazy as well. They didn’t need any more fighting, though, so Kasumi found a seat by the unlit fireplace and plopped herself into its worn leather, drawing her knees to her chest and resting her chin on them. 

She almost wished V was back from his soul-searching, if she wasn’t certain that seeing Rika barely a year into his recovery wouldn’t destroy his progress.

Kasumi sighed and picked at one of the threads holding the seat together, tugging off some of the fraying strands and flicking them toward the fireplace. They didn’t make half the distance, instead slowly floating to the floor, and her nose crinkled in annoyance. Now someone would have to clean that up, and the likely candidate was her. How inconvenient.

A person sat in the chair next to hers, and Kasumi froze at her new company.

Kasumi still had nightmares about the savior of Mint Eye. The building had been immaculately tidy and filled with faceless followers, but if Ray was the moon that guided her through the dark nights, then Rika was the sun that blinded Magenta’s followers to the truth of the organization. Her hair was enough to symbolize that, and frankly she’d almost had her in her grasp as well. Rika was charismatic, charming, affirmative, controlling, and manipulative, yet the Rika that now sat at her side was far from the Rika she’d known. 

This Rika looked like a lost child, eyes rimmed red and expression uncertain. Kasumi was tense anyway, and she brushed her long black hair out of her face before acknowledging the woman at her side.

“Can I help you?”

“... I wanted to apologize,” Rika said quietly, more like a whisper, and Kasumi’s blood boiled. 

“Apologize,” she said. “Seriously?”

The blonde nodded. “Yes, I… what I did to you and the followers of Magenta was wrong. I see that now. If I’d realized sooner, maybe R—”

“ _ No _ .” Kasumi was standing in a flash, towering over the woman and ignoring how scared Rika looked. “You don’t get to say his name, do you understand me? You don’t  _ deserve _ to mourn him like you were family, or a friend. You don’t get to shed a single tear over him. Not after the shit you put him through.” She looked away from Rika and blinked rapidly, willing her tears away. Crying wouldn’t bring Ray back.

“I’m sorry,” Rika whispered, and Kasumi laughed humorlessly.

“Yeah, well sorry won’t bring Ray back, will it?” she spat. “You’re pathetic, Rika. Don’t talk to me.” She stormed away from the fireplace, leaving a concerned Yoosung to pick up his cousin’s pieces in her wake.

 

——

 

Leaving Ray had been the hardest thing Kasumi had done. 

That didn’t mean she forgave him for tricking her into staying with a cult, of course. She was very annoyed at that, still borderline pissed from when she saw what that elixir had done to V, but she’d felt a connection to Ray, as cliche as that sounded. When she’d gotten his messages three months ago, Kasumi had been at her lowest point: barely scraping by on rent, often putting her money from her measly job toward that rather than food and resorting to stealing from markets when she was desperate enough. Better paying jobs hardly wanted to hire someone with a criminal record, but she didn’t have a choice if she wanted to live. She could hardly afford her phone bill, but she kept paying it in hopes that she’d find somewhere online that would pay her better. 

Ray’s message to be brought to his headquarters, therefore, was a welcome surprise. Kasumi had been suspicious, yes, but it wasn’t like she had much to lose. No one would miss her if she disappeared, so into the car she went.

He’d been a breath of fresh air, frankly, even if the outfits he’d provided her were a bit too girly for her tastes. The wardrobe was full of pastels and flowers, skirts that brushed her knees when flowing in the wind and blouses that hung loosely yet still fit her figure. The jeans and tank top she’d worn to the building were chucked to the corner of the extremely pink room and kept there, only her red pleather jacket being worn when she and Ray went out for walks in the garden. Ray  _ loved _ the garden, and though she’d never been much of a flower girl herself Kasumi started looking forward to their walks each day. He could talk for hours about the different flowers he’d planted in his garden, about where they came from and the best ways to take care of them, and Kasumi spent those hours listening to him and letting his voice wash the tension in her away. 

“Please feel free to stop me if I’m boring you,” Ray had said one day, surprising Kasumi out of her peaceful state of mind. “We can talk about something else if you’d prefer.”

She had shook her head and gave him a smile, tucking her hair behind her ear. “I like listening to you talk,” she had said, brushing her shoulder against Ray’s companionably. Ray’s cheeks had turned a light shade of pink, and she’d giggled when he sputtered to find a response. Kasumi leaned up and pressed her lips against his cheek, laughing as his sputtering worsened and he ran off, his face a bright red. 

Sure, she had fun in the chatrooms he had made—the allusive 707 was one of her favorites, to Ray’s curious dismay—but at the end of the day they were just AIs, nothing more. They weren’t going to jump out of the app and take her away on a steed like she used to dream about as a child, but she didn’t need them to. Ray, after all, was right there.

Things changed when V made a very real appearance five days in, and she wasn’t sure who to hurt for more: Ray, with his terrified expression, or V, who had risked himself to save her from Mint Eye only to leave her behind. V obviously blamed himself for that, no matter how much she tried to console him, but she left that to him. She had to focus on herself, just like always, especially when she came face-to-face with Rika.

After what she’d heard about her and V’s relationship from the rest of the RFA, Kasumi was proud of herself for not straight up punching Rika the moment the blonde showed her face.

The blonde was poisonous, Kasumi figured that out within a few minutes of speaking to her, and she hated that in order to keep herself safe she had to pretend to believe what Rika was saying.  _ Yes Rika, V is a vile man _ , she would say.  _ Yes Rika, only you can bring me to eternal paradise _ . Kasumi had become something of a trophy that Rika liked to parade around, so she got to see first-hand how the followers seemed to both adore and fear the woman at her side, and how utterly devoted Ray was to Rika when the three of them were together. Kasumi swore she saw brief hesitation on occasion, but that had to be a trick of the light. Ray was too far in to question Magenta.

Their walks in the garden were more strained, Kasumi no longer able to relax and Ray no longer as talkative. Now that she knew what was really going on, Ray was more inclined to be divulgent of his actual job when it was just the two of them. He’d been hacking nonstop to counteract whatever 707 tried to throw his way, and the bags under his eyes just added evidence to the story. She had still been furious about being lied to at the time, but Ray was her weakness even as she tried to plan an escape, so Kasumi would take his hand and point out a flower he hadn’t told her about, or ask a follow up question about one he had mentioned before. Each time Ray responded in earnest, but he was so tired. Her heart ached.

One time she pointed to a daffodil, and Ray seemed to tense the moment he saw it. 

“What’s this weed doing here?” he had huffed, reaching down to pluck it, but Kasumi grabbed the hand to stop him. He looked up in confusion, and she shook her head.

“I like it,” she had said, grabbing a watering can from behind them and pouring it lightly over the flower. The sun gleamed off its petals, and Ray frowned in confusion.

“You can’t leave it here,” he had said. “It’s a weed. It’ll grow and fester until everything around it dies. That’s the way to ruin a garden.”

She shook her head. “Then we get a pot for it. Maybe it needs a little extra care, but it’s still beautiful in its own way, Ray. Does it deserve to bloom any less than the rest of your garden?”

Ray looked at her like she was the sun, and Kasumi understood why V loved that comparison so much when talking to Rika. She wanted to help Ray, get him help so he could live his best life away from the actual weed that was Rika, and when V called that night she told him as much. He seemed hesitant but agreed.

“It’ll be harder to get out with three people,” V had said. “But that boy deserves all the help he can get. I’ll do what I can from my side.”

“And I’ll do what I can from mine,” Kasumi had promised. 

Then, of course, V got captured, tortured, and poisoned with the elixir that Kasumi hated so much, and they had no time to find Ray while Rika had her breakdown unless they wanted to risk V dying on them. Seven looked genuinely sorrowful when he’d told her they couldn’t go back that second, so they both took off with V and left Mint Eye behind. V groaned as Seven and Vanderwood bickered in the front seat, and surprisingly she was able to get a phone call through to Ray despite what Seven said.

“You said you wouldn’t leave me,” Ray whispered. Kasumi’s heart broke.

“I’m coming back for you, Ray,” she said, determination setting in. “I’ll be back before you have a chance to miss me, I promise.”

“... okay,” Ray said, and she could tell he didn’t believe her. Kasumi swallowed the lump in her throat and pushed through the terror in her stomach.

“Hey Ray? I love you. Please wait for me.”

Ray hung up a moment later, and ten days after he’d strolled into her life Mint Eye had blown up, taking Ray with it. All Kasumi had left of him were his final messages both in the messenger and in her texts, and she was glad she’d recorded Ray singing when she did as she cried herself to sleep.

 

——

 

“Any news from V yet?”

Kasumi sighed and shook her head, pulling out another mug for Seven and pouring him the coffee she’d made. He looked as drained as she felt, though he shook his head when she held out the Bailey’s Jumin had brought and drank it black. Kasumi just poured the alcohol into her drink and let it burn her throat with the heat of the coffee, eyes closing.

“I thought you didn’t drink coffee,” she said idly, and Seven huffed.

“I ran out of soda and don’t feel like getting more. This caffeine works just as well as the sweeter kind.”

“But no Bailey’s?”

“I don’t drink.”

“Fair enough.” She set her mug down and rubbed her eyes. “Has Rika tried to talk to you?”

Seven snorted. “Tried? Yeah. I won’t let her though. You?”

“I think I made her cry when she did.” That drew a laugh out of the redhead across from her, and Kasumi smiled slightly at the small victory. Perhaps it was petty of her to be laughing at another woman’s tears, but she couldn’t bring herself to give a shit about what Rika felt. Hell, the last time she actually cared was only for V’s sake, because he still found the capacity within himself to care about Rika’s wellbeing. She supposed she should care a little bit for Yoosung’s sake, but that went out the window the moment Ray blew himself up. 

No, not Ray. Saeran. Seven’s brother. That was still taking time to get used to, though in hindsight it made sense. Why else would she feel a pang of grief whenever Seven smiled in  _ just _ the right way?

“Yoosung is doing some research into psychology,” Kasumi said conversationally, stirring her drink with her finger and ignoring the burn. “I know he wants to help her, but I think she’s beyond help.”

“She was beyond help the moment she poisoned Saeran and tried to blind V,” Seven spat, and Kasumi flinched at his tone. She figured his smile was a sort of persona half the time, but seeing this other side of happy-go-lucky 707 was a shock. He sagged at her flinch. “Sorry, I shouldn’t be yelling at you.”

“You’re hurt. I get it. He… he was your brother. You have every right to be hurt.” She looked outside, focusing on the field of white flowers across the street. “I wish we could’ve grabbed him,” she admitted. 

“Neither of us knew what was going on until it happened,” Seven said slowly. “And V was dying. We had to get out of there.”

“I could’ve grabbed Ray and ran while you got V to the car,” she insisted, eyes burning as she got worked up. God, she hated losing her cool, especially in front of Seven. Then again, they both had personas they wore to hide the pain. They were kindred spirits, just like she and Ray. “Rika wouldn’t have known while she was having a breakdown, she—”

“She would’ve noticed if you’d ran by her rather than the back way I’d come from,” he said patiently. “We didn’t have time. I’m sorry.”

“We should’ve made time!” Kasumi shouted, ignoring how Jaehee and Zen looked at her warily from the connected living room and how Yoosung gave her a look she could only describe as  _ pitiful _ from near Rika’s door. There, from the cracked open door, was Rika’s face, and Kasumi saw red as she grabbed her half-full mug and flung it as hard as she could toward the she-devil, ignoring everyone’s shouts and the sound of shattering ceramic. Kasumi ran out of the cabin despite the advice Jumin and Seven had given them all not a day earlier to not do so, going to the field and falling to her knees in the middle of it. Faintly, she heard her name being called, but she ignored it in favor of breathing in the smell of the wildflowers and imagining how much Ray would have loved it there. 

Footsteps came behind her, and she sighed. 

“Is she okay?” she asked, not bothering to look at her companion. He (and it was he, Jaehee’s footsteps sounded different than the guys of the RFA) sat down beside her and crossed his legs. 

“She’ll live,” Seven said, placing a hand on her shoulder. “And she deserved that, no matter what Yoosung says. Or Zen.”

“She doesn’t have the right to mourn him,” Kasumi whispered, ignoring what Seven said and twirling one of the white flowers robotically. “She’s the one who k—she’s the reason he’s gone. She doesn’t get to grieve him when it’s  _ all her fault _ , Seven.”

“I know,” he murmured, taking the flower from her fingers and tucking it behind her ear. Her mind flashed back to a walk in the garden, to the sound of genuine, carefree laughter from both herself and Ray as he plucked one of his precious flowers and tucked it behind that same ear. 

_ “But you’d worked so hard to grow it,” she had said, and Ray had only smiled.  _

_ “It looks much prettier on you,” Ray had responded, making sure the flower was secure.  _

For a moment, Seven and Ray blurred together, and though she knew logically that Ray didn’t have bright red hair or honey gold eyes or striped glasses, she still felt safe near his brother, and that safety was enough to finally break her walls. Kasumi let Seven pull her to his chest as her eyes watered, and she finally let herself cry for the first time since coming face-to-face with the murderer of the man she loved. 

And if she heard Seven cry with her, she didn’t say anything. They both needed a moment of weakness. 

 

——

 

Jumin had decided on a party every two years. 

With V being gone for an indefinite amount of time, it had been decided that Jumin would be the one to make logistical decisions regarding the RFA. They tried to pass on the title of temporary leader off to Kasumi initially, but she’d been quick to turn it down. She wasn’t leader material, no matter how much the RFA insisted she was, and she was perfectly fine with sending out emails to potential guests. She’d become quite good at it during her time at Mint Eye—she’d managed to invite nearly forty people if her memory served her correctly—but since the party was cancelled, she had no way of knowing if that really constituted as a success. It certainly didn’t make her a leader. 

“I just don’t get why you wanted to pass it to me,” she told Zen when they met up for coffee. It was cheaper now that she had an employee discount at Galaxy Bucks, but the clientele was exhausting. Kasumi had been quick to shed her uniform the moment she was off the clock. “I can barely pay my monthly rent. How am I supposed to run a charity organization?”

“It’s not just about being able to run an organization,” Zen said, ordering the most obnoxious drink Kasumi had heard. If she’d been behind the counter she may very well have killed her friend. “You have a natural charisma, Kasumi, one that makes people want to follow you. Like it or not, your thoughts and opinions carry weight within the RFA. Especially after you-know-who.”

Kasumi exhaled slowly out of her nose instead of actually answering. None of them said  _ her _ name anymore, not unless they were talking with Yoosung. The only good thing  _ she _ had done was expose herself and the prime minister to all of South Korea, giving Seven the opportunity to stop hiding from them on. Jumin hiring him helped keep whatever agency he’d worked for off of his back, but what  _ she _ had done had gotten his father’s goons off of him as well. 

Kasumi hated thinking of that woman doing something good, and she would never forgive her. But it was a start, one that Yoosung has clung to the moment the video had aired. She liked to think that V would have approved of the RFA getting Rika professional, more secure help, but his letters had grown scarce over the last few months. She wasn’t sure even mentioning  _ her _ name was a good idea. 

“I only said what I did to help Yoosung,” she said, leading Zen to one of the cleaner tables and sitting down. “He suffered too much because of her. It was the least any of us could do.”

“True. Gah, his crying still haunts my dreams.” Zen’s face scrunched up, and Kasumi snorted. 

“Careful, pretty boy. Keep doing that and you’ll get wrinkles.”

“What?!” He quickly straightened his face out and Kasumi laughed wholeheartedly, leaning back in her seat happily. Narcissist as he was, Zen was one of the few people that knew how to make her smile without fail. The entire RFA could, but Zen did it the easiest. His lips quirked up at her laughter and he sipped at his obnoxious drink, nodding at her. “That a new jacket? I’ve never seen it before.”

She tugged the coat closet around herself and nodded, feeling a little self-conscious. Perhaps it was a little  _ too _ sentimental, but she’d seen the magenta coat in the window of a thrift store and she knew she needed it at once. A fake blue rose from the same store was sewed into the coat’s lapel, and if she imagined hard enough she could still smell him: flowers and wood and a slightly tangy undertone that was likely the elixir that had been forced into his system. 

Kasumi tried not to think about that last part. 

“It looks good on you,” Zen said quietly, and she smiled softly at him, reaching across the table to give his hand a squeeze. He returned it automatically, the two of them letting the silence envelope them in between casual, lighter conversation. He walked her home to her shabby apartment like the gentleman that he was, complete with a kiss on the back of her hand before he left, and Kasumi shook her head fondly as she settled in for the evening. She hung the coat delicately on the coat rack by the door and changed out of her uniform into her pajamas, padding over to the kitchen table and frowning at the mail that sat there. That definitely hadn’t been there before she left that morning. Then again, the stove had still been broken as well, yet now as she tried it out it was like new. 

“Dammit Saeyoung,” she muttered under her breath without malice. “At least warn me before you break into my home.  _ Again _ .”

The bills she put aside until morning; she’d paid most of them off already, so they were likely just automatic reminders sent to her. At the bottom of the pile that remained was a lavender colored envelope, and a smile spread across Kasumi’s face as she opened it. She hadn’t heard from V in a while, and his letters marking his progress past  _ her _ always brought Kasumi joy. She was even thinking about making a scrapbook of them all for V to look at whenever he fell back into depression. 

> _ Kasumi, _
> 
> _ I grow weary of traveling, but I can’t bring myself to regret it. Each moment of these past two years has brought something back to life within me, like a flame that needs oxygen to grow. My art has improved immensely, and I’m finding inspiration from the sights I’m seeing as well as from the people around me.  _
> 
> _ I feel alive again, frankly, and I have you to thank.  _
> 
> _ If you hadn’t been there during those eleven days, I would have fallen back to Rika, because she was what I thought I deserved. You helped show me that love—true love—doesn’t manipulate or have contingencies. I’ll forever be grateful.  _
> 
> _ Jumin told me that we’re hosting another party soon. I think I’m ready to return home. Two years have passed since I was in South Korea, and frankly I’m beginning to miss home.  _
> 
> _ Stay well, Kasumi. I’ll see you at the party.  _
> 
> _ —Jihyun _

Kasumi grinned at the news and hopped into the messenger at once, filling everyone in (save for Jumin) on what V said. The chat exploded with activity and renewed energy toward the party, and she laughed as Seven hogged the chat log and Jaehee scolded him for doing that again. 

In a month, it would be the two year anniversary of Mint Eye’s downfall. She felt her grief in the back of her mind, knowing that she’d spend the day like last year in Seven’s bunker eating ice cream and exchanging stories with one another under his bulky covers. That was a month from now, though. 

For now, Kasumi had a party to plan. 

 

—-

 

There was no sign of V two hours into the party, and Kasumi was ready to admit defeat.

Though V had been notorious for not answering his phone when she’d first joined the RFA, she had assumed that those were just lies to keep his secrets secure. Now, Jumin had told her that V was indeed in the country via a text he’d sent his friend at three in the morning, but after that he hadn’t answered calls or texts from anyone. Kasumi was beginning to believe that his notoriety was more than a little fib. 

Even without V, the party was in full swing, and Kasumi was a little smug when she saw a few guests there that had sworn two years prior they’d never attend another RFA party after their last-minute cancellation. It had taken a little prodding on her end but, she thought, the rich needed to be careful with their use of the word  _ never _ . They didn’t seem to know what it meant. The most popular attraction, of course, was the auction for V’s photos, all of them new from his two year journey across the continent. The photos were beautiful, each of them focusing on the theme of growth and rebirth if she wasn’t mistaken, and some of the auction prices she heard shouted Zen’s way were impressive even for a rich person. She felt her lips twitch up and ducked her face to hide the smile, moving closer to V’s works and pausing in front of one in particular.

A small yellow flower stood out against an array of blues and pinks and whites, standing strong and growing on its own. The petals were dewy, either from recent rain or from a spray bottle, and a single beam of sunlight shone down on that flower alone—the only focus in the image. Kasumi’s eyes moved to the artist tag beside the photo of the daffodil, swallowing thickly at the title.

_ The Weed. _

She shook her head and looked back to the photo, not looking away when Jumin stood by her side and examined it as well. “You like this one?” he asked. 

Kasumi nodded. “Yeah, I… we talked about daffodils a lot, Ray and I. How something supposedly vile for the whole can look so beautiful, and how they deserve to bloom just as much as any other flower. I don’t remember mentioning that conversation to Jihyun, though.”

Jumin hummed in understanding. “I see. V is more observant than he gets credit for, even if he was partially blind when he first met you. Maybe he had a similar conversation with Saeran in the past, and it translated into his work.”

She finally tore her eyes away from the photo to meet Jumin’s eyes. “Yeah?”

“From my understanding, the Chois have known V for a long time.” He gave her a small smile. “I’m going to buy this for you. Decorate your apartment with some beauty, Kasumi.”

Her eyes felt like they were about to bulge out of her head. “W-wait, what? Jumin, I couldn’t ask that of you.”

“It’s a gift,” he said breezily. “You won’t let me help you with your rent or food, so at least allow me to gift you something you obviously adore.”

Kasumi’s grin was wide, and she gave Jumin a tight hug before the man could protest it. He returned it a moment later, albeit a bit awkwardly, and patted her back when she pulled away. “Thank you, Jumin.”

“Of course.” He straightened and glanced into the crowd, brightening a bit when he caught the eye of a blonde in the crowd. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I should go meet with Miss Jung. She’s offered a business deal between C&R and A.I.E. that I’d be an idiot to refuse.”

Kasumi snorted and pushed him lightly. “Yes, I’m sure that’s why you just lit up like it’s Christmas. Go find your date, Jumin. I’ll be fine.” 

She watched as he walked off and touched the edge of the photo— _ her photo _ —fondly, walking away and observing the rest of the party. Seven was causing controlled chaos that only he could pull off to the expense of poor Yoosung, Zen was finishing up the auction, and Jaehee was running around like a mad woman to make sure everything they had planned went smoothly. Kasumi mingled with the guests until the party seemed to start winding down, and she let out a disappointed huff when she still hadn’t come across V. She pulled out her phone to try and give the man a piece of her mind when footsteps approached.

“Ah, you’re still here,” a voice said from behind her, and Kasumi grinned as she turned around. There, in the flesh, was V, his blue hair cut short and his outfit oddly resembling a Western hippie from the 70s. She snorted and reached up to give him a hug, relaxing into it as he returned it tightly. “I’m glad I got here before everyone left,” he continued. 

“I was about to yell at you,” she admitted, pulling away and taking a step back. “You travelled safely I hope?”

“I did,” V said, glancing around. “Where’s Luciel? I have something for him.”

She skimmed the lingering crowd and nodded at the group of RFA members, waving until she got Seven’s attention. “Saeyoung! Get over here!”

“Saeyoung?” V questioned, raising his eyebrows at Seven when he arrived. “I didn’t know you wanted to go by that name again.”

Seven shrugged and pocketed his hands in his slacks. “I’m giving it a shot. It’s mostly interchangeable at the moment, so call me whichever. Anyway, what’s up?”

“V’s got a surprise for you,” Kasumi said, and V chuckled.

“Actually, it’s for you too, Kasumi.”

“Oh?” She exchanged a glance with Seven, who merely shrugged in his confusion, and she took a deep breath. “Okay, Jihyun. Where’s this surprise?”  
“Wait right here.” He was gone as quickly as he came, and for a few minutes he seemed to be talking to someone in the doorway. Kasumi took a step closer to Seven and bumped her arm against his, chewing her lip until he returned the bump and gave her a smile. Finally V returned, and before either of them could ask him what was going on, a figure stepped away from the doorframe and into the hall.

Kasumi’s entire world froze.

He was in a pink suit jacket and white trousers, rather than the magenta she’d come to associate him with. His mint eyes were clearer than Kasumi ever remembered seeing them, though they became glassy when Seven ran over and pulled him into a tight hug, apologies rolling off his lips. He looked surprised to be touched, surprised to even be there, but he held his brother as tightly as Seven held him, saying something she couldn’t quite make out but made Seven laugh wetly. A large scar ran from his neck to just below his eye, darker than the rest of his skin.

She had never seen someone more beautiful in her life.

“I thought he died,” she whispered to V as the brothers reunited, R—Saeran being the only reason Seven seemed to be standing at the moment. V shook his head, arms folded across his chest as he watched the two with her.

“I went to Mint Eye first after I left,” he said. “I had a gut feeling, or maybe it was just pure hope that Saeran hadn’t perished, and I ended up being right. He was… badly hurt. He’d been there for a while after the explosion without treatment, and it’s a miracle he’s alive. I found him though, and he got treatment.”

“Mental as well as physical? All those years under  _ her _ care, if you can call it that—”

“He was taken care of, I promise. He just needs love, and between you and Saeyoung, he won’t find any shortage of that.”

“And you, Jihyun.” Kasumi reached up and squeezed his arm. “Thank you.” 

V didn’t respond, turning her toward the brothers as Seven finally pulled away from Saeran and looked back at Kasumi. His eyes were still glassy from tears, both of their shirts wet from their crying, yet Kasumi read the distance for the permission it was and went over to Saeran finally, her own eyes stinging with unshed tears. Saeran stared back at her almost in wonder, reaching up when she stopped a foot from him and brushing his fingers against her cheek. Neither of them said anything for a drastically long moment, afraid to break the silence, and Saeran reached into his breast pocket, pulling out a slightly crumpled daffodil. He reached and weaved it slowly into one of her braids, a smile forming, and she broke, falling into him and hugging him like he’d disappear if she held him any looser. The two of them fell to the ground, Kasumi not caring if dirt got onto her dress, and she had to swallow a few times before she could find her voice.

“I-I thought you were  _ dead _ ,” she whispered, gripping him tighter. “You’re alive, oh my god  _ you’re alive _ —”

“I’m alive,” he echoed, his lips pressing a hesitant kiss to her temple. Kasumi cried harder, two years of grief unloading onto Saeran’s shoulder, and he kissed her temple again. “I won’t leave you again. I’m sorry.”

“We should have gone back for you,” she said, ignoring his apology, because he had nothing to be sorry for. “You should have gotten out with us. I’m so sorry, Ray. Saeran. I… I’m  _ sorry _ .”

“I don’t blame you,” Saeran said, pulling back far enough to wipe her tears away. Kasumi sniffled and reached up to cup his face, thumb tracing his scar. He shifted uncomfortably, and she hesitated. “It’s not the most pleasing thing to look at,” he said in answer to her silent question, and she shook her head, pressing a kiss to his scar.

“It’s beautiful,” she murmured into his ear. “You’re beautiful, and  _ alive _ , and I still love you.” She paused. “If you’ll have me.”

Saeran smiled a genuine smile, one she hadn’t seen since before she discovered the RFA weren’t, in fact, AIs, and he leaned forward to give her a kiss. It was wet from their tears and sloppy, and amateur in the way someone who hadn’t kissed anyone before would kiss, but it was  _ theirs _ and that automatically made it perfect in her eyes. She returned the kiss and casually flipped off the whistle from behind them that likely came from Zen, tugging Saeran closer by the neck and ignoring their surroundings.

Saeran was alive. Everyone else could go fuck off.

 

—-

 

Neither Seven nor Kasumi wanted to be separated from Saeran. Rather than argue where he’d stay now that they had him back, they stopped by Kasumi’s shoddy apartment so she could grab a bag of clothes and hang up her new photo. She placed it right above the couch, where the sun always shone in the afternoon despite her curtains, and left her apartment with a smile.

The three went to Seven’s bunker, and she snickered as Seven explained how Saeran would have to learn various Arabic phrases to get into the bunker from now on, his exasperated stare only intensifying her laughter. She assured him that, as a frequent visitor to Seven’s bunker, he would have no issue picking the phrases up if she could learn them, and she quickly shed her dress in favor of her pajamas so she could hurry back to the Choi twins in the living room. Seven had already dragged out the blankets from God knew where and scattered them across the floor, taking a variety of movies from Saeran and popping the first one in. Kasumi went along with their established routine, a slight skip to her step every time she saw Saeran was still in the living room and not a figment of their imagination.

Two years ago, she and Seven had been in the hospital with V when the explosion went off, and amid the sounds of the hospital he had pulled a movie up on his phone for them to watch after  _ she _ had confirmed that Ray had died in the blast. One year ago, Kasumi had come over to the bunker and stood in front of Seven’s security gate until she was able to translate the answer to his riddle correctly, and when she’d entered she saw a ball of 707 on the floor looking half dead. She’d silently made herself at home and had gathered the blankets, the popcorn, the movies, and the ice cream, putting the movies on until Seven emerged from his state and criticized the movie she’d put on. That had continued until the ice cream was gone and they’d both exchanged stories about Saeran, though Kasumi had very little compared to his brother. They’d bonded in their grief, and had made a vow that they’d always celebrate the anniversary of Mint Eye just as they were in that moment.

Now the three of them sat in front of Seven’s highly sophisticated television set while a bad black-and-white movie played, Seven throwing popcorn pieces at the damsel in distress and Saeran paying close attention with the occasional grumble toward his brother. Kasumi watched them both fondly, ever the observer, and leaned against Saeran contently. Saeran looked down at her with a raised eyebrow.

“What? Are you tired?”

She shook her head and pulled half of his cover over her. Saeran helped cover her automatically, wrapping an arm around her shoulders to hold her close. “I’m just happy you’re here,” Kasumi said, feeling giddy when he smiled.

“I’m happy I’m here with you,” he admitted, his attention no longer on the movie. He leaned forward and kissed her nose, grinning when Kasumi giggled and moved closer to him. “Hey Kasumi?”

“Yes, Saeran?”

“I… I love you. I know I never said it back before, but it’s true. It’s always been true.”

Kasumi smiled and entwined their fingers together. “I’ve always known, Saeran. I love you too.”

Saeran beamed at her and Kasumi leaned up to kiss him soundly, ignoring Seven as he scolded them for missing the movie and wrapping her arms around Saeran’s middle. Saeran hummed happily against her lips and shot a retort at his brother, the two of them bickering like they hadn’t been apart for the last few years. Kasumi watched them and touched the daffodil still in her braid.

Saeran was strong, just like her daffodil. So many bad things happened to him in his short life, but he bounced back up each time to fight anew. Kasumi was honored to have been there when he finally began to bloom.

**Author's Note:**

> saeran deserves better 2kforever
> 
> check out my other mystic messenger work: To the Moon and Back (https://archiveofourown.org/works/16258421/chapters/38014625)
> 
> check out my tumblr blogs!: badger-wife (for all your otome memes) and aeducanwrites (for all my writing inspo and so on)


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